Sound Off: Are Proposed Education Fees a Tax on the Troops?

Week of April 24, 2017

Military.com

The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. opposes a congressional proposal that would strip benefits granted under the Post-9/11 GI Bill. Specifically, Congress is considering a bill that would reinstate a non-reimbursable enrollment fee for access to education benefits. The new access fee would be $2400, payable in $100 monthly increments, for enlistees starting in 2018. That's double the old $1200 fee required in the Montgomery GI Bill, a fee that was eliminated in that Post-9/11 GI Bill. The fact that America was at war was one of the motivating factors behind getting rid of the fees in that 2009 law. The VFW maintains that, because we're still at war, it's wrong to even consider asking the men and women who serve to pay for access to that benefit. For more details, and to sound off on the issue, visit this Under the Radar post.